Death Adder
by PhantomWraith
Summary: For ages, they have existed. For ages, they have been seen as both monsters and saviors. Now, they're all gone. All of them except for one...
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Death Adder

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Chapter One

Hissing in pain as he clutched his bleeding leg with one hand, he continued to drag himself down the lightless hall. A handful of kunai jutted out from his left thigh, their sharp tips grinding against the bone. He was no stranger to pain, however. This wasn't the first time he had experienced something such as this. In fact, it was the twelve time in the past month.

He was being hunted...

"Gah! It hurts!"

"Quit your bitching, you fucking pussy."

Naruto froze from within his hiding spot as soon as he heard their voices. The first voice belonged to the jounin who he had slashed his claws across his chest, slicing through the man's body armor and flesh. The other belonged to his partner in crime. They were both dressed in full ANBU attire, the first having a jackal mask and the other having a wolf mask. Both were from the Inuzuka clan, but hadn't brought their canine companions; they wouldn't go near the demon brat, let alone attack it.

_'They're going to pay...I'm going to MAKE them pay.'_ Naruto hissed as he felt an odd sensation wash over him, but he ignored it even as his pain began to disappear. Just as the two ANBU grew closer, the sensation grew stronger and Naruto couldn't ignore it anymore. Looking down, Naruto was forced to hold back a gasp of surprise upon seeing that his legs had become a ten foot long serpentine tail covered in pitch black scales with a glossy crimson sheen to them in certain angles of light. The same kind of scales began to form on the back of his hands and forearms, jagged spikes on his knuckles made of the same scales, and his originally inch long claws turned pitch black as they grew an inch longer and sharper than before.

Knowledge that he previously knew nothing of infiltrated his mind, over writing the natural motor skills he originally had. Catching his reflection in a nearby mirror, Naruto watched with wide eyes as his hair turned pitch black with the same glossy crimson sheen as his scales, his eyes slowly turning deep gold with black slit pupils and black sclera. His skin grew paler with every second as black tribal markings decorated his torso, arms, neck, and face.

Hissing dangerously as he bared his needle-like fangs, Naruto became consumed with rage as he tore off his ruined orange jumpsuit, revealing the dark colored scales lining his spine and ringing his neck. Spinning around and crashing through the glass door of the bathroom, Naruto grabbed both of the ANBU by their throats and smashed through the wall on the other side of the hall.

_"You'll pay for what you have done to me! You'll pay with your lives!"_ Naruto hissed out as his eyes flashed crimson and locked with those of the two ANBU, their own eyes flashing red for a split second. _"You'll pay with your SOULS!"_

In the next instant, the two shinobi were outlined in scarlet energy before Naruto pulled his hands away from their necks, dragging crimson spectres of the pair with them. Both of their spirits swiftly became orbs of red energy in his hands as he held them close to his chest where the black tattoos spiraled to form a ring around a circle of red scales. As they drew closer to the scales, they were quickly sucked into the circle and absorbed by Naruto. Once again, knowledge that wasn't his own filled his mind.

Clutching his head in pain, he let out a deep hiss of confusion and agony. He caught a glimpse of their lives, learning what they knew. He learned dozens of new ninjutsu and genjutsu techniques, different taijutsu and kenjutsu styles, how to communicate with canines, and various other things. When the pain passed, Naruto gasped for breath and glared down at the two lifeless corpses lying beneath him. Backing up from them, Naruto summoned twin balls of fire in his hands before tossing them at the bodies, catching them on fire.

"So you've finally awoken your true self." Sarutobi spoke up from directly behind Naruto, startling the twelve year old boy. The Sandaime was dressed in his usually white and red robes, pipe in hand, but his face was of pure seriousness. Placing a hand on the boy's shoulder as he led him away from the burning bodies, Sarutobi continued. "What you just did to those two was called Soul Theft, an ability only your kind could perform. By your kind, I mean the Reptilos. Any reptilian creature in any myths, legends, folk tales, ancient history, or word of mouth are Reptilos. You, specifically, are a Serpent Reptilos like the Gorgans of an ancient civilization called Greece or the more familiar term, a Naga."

_"So..."_ Naruto began in an oddly calm voice as he paused and glanced behind him, watching as the apartment building caught fire and started burning at a rapid pace. _"I'm really not human, am I?"_

"Sadly, no." Sarutobi sighed out as he continued to lead the boy down the dark road, the full moon hanging over head. "However, back during the clan wars when the Reptilos were still alive and many, they appeared as simple humans with certain abilities derived from their ancestors like Soul Theft and other powers. It was rare for one to awaken so strongly that they would physically change in such a way that their entire physiology would be altered; like yourself for example. Those rare few were revered as immortals or celestial beings."

_"..."_ Naruto remained quiet, not at all concerned by the fact he was slithering along on his tail and not walking on two legs. It just felt natural to him now.

"Of course, Awakened Reptilos weren't really immortal or celestial beings. They only seemed immortal because of the massive amount of souls they had consumed via Soul Theft while fighting against the other clans back then. You see, with every soul a Reptilos claims, they survive and fully recover from any form of death be it decapitation, old age, sickness, poison, etcetera." Sarutobi explained as they reached his office. No one was awake at the moment- besides ANBU- seeing as it was almost two in the morning, so he was free to talk with Naruto about his heritage. "Truly magnificent warriors, I must admit."

_"Sorry to interrupt, Jiji, but how do you know so much about them?"_ Naruto asked suspiciously as he placed his hands on the edge of Sarutobi's desk and leaned forward, narrowing his eyes at the elderly Hokage sitting before him. _"And just how did you know I was a Reptilos?"_

"Because your mother was one. She died giving birth to you the night before Kyuubi attacked and your father was a jounin in Kiri, but he believes you're dead." Sarutobi answered softly. "You see, the Yondaime was originally going to use his own son to seal the Kyuubi, but the boy died due to too much stress on his heart from the massive pressure of Kyuubi's killing intent. You were the only other child born within fourty eight hours and the Yondaime was left with no other choice than to seal the beast in you."

_"I see."_ Naruto quietly sighed out as he quit leaning on the desk and gained a solemn expression on his face. _"My father...What was his name?"_

"Momochi Zabuza, an A-rank missing-nin of Kiri. He had attempted to kill the Yondaime Mizukage to end the Bloodline Purge, but had failed and was forced to leave." Sarutobi responded while handing a folder over to Naruto. "He was last seen in Sea Country with the Demon Brothers, good friends of your parents, and a third accomplice, but their identity is still unknown."

_"Did my mother leave me anything?"_ Naruto asked as he read through the file, paying close attention to Zabuza's profile and memorizing his picture. Sarutobi nodded and went over to a picture of the Yondaime on the wall, moving it aside as he bit hid thumb and swiped the blood across a hidden seal on the wall. The seal glowed blue for a moment before a small safe door opened up, revealing well over a dozen small scroll, four large scrolls, a decorative polished box, and an envelope. Once the Sandaime was finished moving everything onto his desk, Naruto grabbed the decorative box and held it in front of him.

Slowly, he flipped the two latches and opened the box, revealing a pair of metal bracers with armored glove attachments. On top of the armored gauntlets were three holes that went down the length of the bracer, a senbon set in each hole already on both of them. The gauntlets themselves were pitch black with dark red markings on them and the senbon themselves were pitch black. A small card in the corner of the box caught Naruto's attention.

_"Death Seeker Gauntlets."_ Naruto read outloud as he set the box down and gingerly removed them from the wooden box before putting them on. They fit perfectly. Spinning around rapidly and aiming his right fist at the far wall beside the door, Naruto squeezed the trigger-like handle grasped in his hand and fired the three senbon. Gurgling as he choked on his own blood, an ANBU fell to the ground, Ne decorating his mask. The middle senbon had struck the man's throat while the other two hit his shoulders.

"Root." Sarutobi growled out with a scowl as he saw the Ne on the man's mask. Naruto ignored the Sandaime's words as he moved closer to the body and grabbed the man's throat and absorbed his soul through Soul Theft just like he had done with the two ANBU earlier that night. Images flashed through his head an moment later as he learned what the man knew.

_"Danzo's planning something that involves both of us. I'm not sure what it is, but neither of us will like it."_ Naruto warned his surrogate grandfather as he removed his senbon from the corpse and put them back in the gauntlet. Sarutobi's eyes widened slightly in surprise as Naruto moved back over to him.

"What do you mean? How do you know about Danzo and what he's planning?" The Sandaime inquired.

_"So you didn't know Reptilos gain the knowledge of those whose souls they absorb?"_ Naruto asked in return, curious and a little confused.

"No, I only know what your mother told me over the years I knew her before she died. Only a Reptilos can open the scrolls and as far as I can tell, you're the last living Reptilos." Sarutobi responded a bit sheepishly, the mood oddly light despite the heavy situation. "So what do you plan to do now, Naruto?"

_"No. I'm no longer Naturo. Uzumaki Naruto died at 1:12 this morning. Reptilos Naruto now stands in his place."_ Naruto hissed out as his eyes flashed red again, but not from Soul Theft. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes in deep thought. After a minute or two, he answered the Sandaime's question. _"As much as I want to find my father, I can't afford to do that just yet. Killing the two ANBU earlier and the Root ANBU were flukes. I caught them off guard and they had no true knowledge of my capabilities, allowing me to kill them swiftly. I need proper training and finances before I can seek him out."_

"You still want to attend the Academy? Even though you know you'll be ostracized even more now that you don't even look human?" Sarutobi asked incredulously as he walked around the desk and stood in front of Naruto, who was now at eye level with him because of his serpentine body.

_"I don't care what they think of me anymore. I've hidden myself for too long and its about time I start showing who I really am."_ Naruto hissed out as he turned away from Sarutobi, eyes narrowed in anger as he stared at his armored fists. Yet again, the Sandaime was shocked by the boy's words.

"'Who you really are?' What do you mean, Naruto?" Naruto looked over his shoulder at the man.

_"Have you not noticed how easily I've killed three men already? I've killed dozens of others already in the past four months from defending myself and almost two hundred in the past three years."_ Naruto hissed out as he grabbed a blank scroll on the Sandaime's desk and took a caligraphy brush before writing down several storage seals and sealing everything left to him by his mother in the scroll. _"From now on, if anyone- shinobi or civilian- messes with me, I will kill them without hesitation. Even if its out in the middle of a busy street, I'll kill them. I have no issues with doing so."_

"Naruto..." Sarutobi whispered softly as he reached out to touch the boy's shoulder, but he was too slow. Naruto had already started moving toward the door and had already opened it.

_"I'll see you in a couple days before I return to the Academy. Good night, Sandaime-sama."_ Naruto parted as he closed the door behind him and left the building. Map and keys in hand, Naruto followed the map to the home his mother had left him. When he reached his destination an hour later, Naruto was surprised by what he found. He had originally expected to find a normal house or something of the like, but what he got was a cave with a pair of stone doors blocking the entrance. Looking down at the unusual key in his hand, Naruto understood what it was really meant for. On the two doors was an image of multiple snake-like creatures and in the center was a small indent meant for the key, which was a snake skull made of dark grey metal.

Placing the skull in the hole and taking it back out, the two moss-covered stone slabs began to slowly slide apart, stone grinding against stone as the ancient stone mechanisms worked their magic. When they were fully opened, Naruto was surprised yet again by what he saw. The floors, walls, and ceiling were covered in pure black and grey marble with white marble pillars supporting the ceiling. Metal bowls hung from the ceiling by chains, cradling oil-fueled flames that lit the corridors. Every so often, statues of various Awakened Reptilos stood in different poses.

Walking down the hall, Naruto eventually came across what could be called a throne room. On the other side of the large chamber sat a throne made of white marble that contrasted quite heavily against the back drop of smokey grey-black marble and dark red carpet leading up to the throne. Whistling quietly in awe, Naruto continued over to the throne and sat down in it, coiling his tail under him as he relaxed in the stone chair. Unfurling the scroll in his hand, Naruto began to unseal the contents and started reading them one by one...

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Three Years Later

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Wearing a black hooded cloak over his body, Naruto entered the class room and went to his seat in the very back row in the darkest corner. A week after his transformation, Naruto had returned to his classes and continued his daily activities. He had learned much from his mother's scrolls and mastered almost every technique that was in them along with all of the taijutsu and kenjutsu styles. Grazing the tips of his claws along the desk before clenching his hand into a fist, Naruto gazed down at the Death Seeker gauntlet on his left arm, the matching one still on his right. He had mastered them as well and even added onto them. Before, they needed to be reloaded after every use, but Naruto applied seals to the inside that instantly reloaded them with the special black poison coated senbon needles.

Just the other day, Naruto had 'requested' of the Sandaime for a specific jounin sensei and team, which he was given without much of a fuss. Today, the teams would be assigned and Naruto was glad for it. He had put up with the Uchiha brat's arrogance and 'lone avenger' attitude long enough and was at the point of snapping every bone in the boy's body. His twin sister, on the hand, was welcome company and a true beauty in Naruto's eyes.

_'Ah, she's here...'_ Naruto mused as he smiled softly, watching as Kira walked into the room. She was about 5'6" and slim with a lithe, athletic build and perfect hour glass figure. Through personal experience, Naruto knew that Kira's breasts were a hefty E-cup for a 16 year old young woman. Her black hair cascaded down to her broad hips and her coal black eyes glowed with warmth. Kira was currently wearing a pair of skin-tight black pants, black stilleto-style shinobi heels, a black hitai-ate tied around her neck, a black elbow-length fingerless glove on her right arm, and a black long-sleeve top that left her entire right shoulder and arm bare along with her stomach.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun." Kira greeted with a warm smile as she sat next to Naruto. She was the only person Naruto allowed to sit next to him, but then again, the others didn't want anything to do with him after he brutally mauled Haruno Sakura three years ago when she hit him for some reason that he had forgotten. The girl never returned to the Academy after that.

_"Good morning, Kira."_ Naruto greeted in response, returning her smile faintly. He didn't smile much any more, mostly just around Kira. The two had been seeing each other for the past year and had slept together for the first time four days ago. He had been hesitant to reveal his true appearance to Kira, thinking she would come to fear him like many others would, but she had surprised him when she simply smiled and caressed his face before kissing him. After that, they had grown closer than ever.

_"Did you enjoy yourself last night?"_ Naruto whispered as he leaned closer to Kira, who blushed a deep scarlet and lowered her head in embarrasment. They had gone almost a full twelve hours yesterday and Naruto had completely worn Kira out; luckily, she was training to become a med-nin and knew a few medical techniques that healed her sore body rather swiftly.

"Mm-hm." Kira answered back softly, smiling shyly as she leaned against Naruto and rested her head on his shoulder. They spent the rest of the time in peaceful silence until Iruka started calling out the teams.

"...Team 7 will be Uchiha Sasuke, Sai, and Ami under Hatake Kakashi. Team 8 will be Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, and Inuzuka Kiba. Team 9 is still in circulation. Team 10 will be Akimichi Chouji, Nara Shikamaru, and Yamanaka Ino. Team 11 will be Uchiha Kira, Reptilos Naruto, and Ivana Dostya under Mitarashi Anko. Team 12..." Naruto tuned Iruka out as he glanced at Dostya. She was originally from a small village past Suna's western border and she was smart enough to give Shikamaru a run for his money in strategy; she was also the only person in their class to beat Shikamaru in shogi three out of four times with Naruto trailing close behind at two out of three times.

Standing at about 5'7" with long black hair and bright red eyes, Dostya was a unique young woman. She wore baggy black pants tucked into black armored knee-high combat boots, a black sleeveless turtleneck sweater over a long-sleeve fishnet top that pushed up her D-cup breasts, a black trench coat that went down to her ankles, and carried around two ninjato swords crossed on her back with the handles at her hips and the tips at her shoulders. She was the strongest kunoichi in their class and brutal; she never pulled her punches when it came to the taijutsu spars the class had regularly.

"Team 11, come with me." Anko called out in a rather calm tone of voice as she appeared via Shunshin. Team 11 stood up and followed their sensei to her favorite spot in Konoha; Training Ground 44, the Forest of Death. "Alright, normally, we're supposed to introduce ourselves to each other, but I think it's just stupid and boring, so we're doing something different."

_"Oh? And that would be what, exactly?"_ Naruto inquired as he sat under the shade of a tree along the fence as they stopped at a small hut just outside of TG 44's fence next to a gate.

"I believe one doesn't truly know one another outside of combat. By fighting one another, you'll learn each other's strengths and weaknesses and know exactly where you'll be in the team." Anko pointed out as she pulled out a senbon and started spinning it between her fingers, passing it from one finger to the next with every turn before repeating the cycle. Naruto couldn't stop the grin from forming on his lips as he rose back up, cracking his neck in anticipation.

_"Then what are we waiting for? Let's get started."_ Anko would later regret chosing to fight her students, especially the cloaked enigma that was Reptilos Naruto...


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Death Adder

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Chapter Two

"Hey, where's Cho? He should have been back by now." One of the men asked his friend. The man shrugged, not really caring. That was when three senbon struck them both in the chest, paralysed by the poison on them. It was took dark for them to see their attacker, even as said person drew closer to them and stood right between them. The assailant reached down with their hands before everything went black for the two. Naruto grinned as he absorbed two more souls. He had absorbed nearly a hundred in the past two hours and had honestly come to enjoy the sensation a little more than necessary.

Team 11 had been tasked with wiping out another bandit camp, the fifty-eighth time in the past six months. Each time, Anko would hang back under Naruto request while he and Kira infiltrated the camp and silently made their way to the core before killing the men in their sleep while Dostya took care of any stragglers outside of the perimeter. Each time, they came back with zero failures or injuries. Team 11 had become known amongst the shinobi ranks as Team Venom for two reasons; their constant use of poisons and their codenames. Kira was Black Mamba, Dostya was Mojave Rattler, and Naruto was Death Adder. Anko didn't have one.

_"Death Adder reporting in. All objectives achieved."_ Naruto stated calmly into the mike of his communicator. Retrieving the six spent senbon and cleaning them off, Naruto reloaded his gauntlets and began to head back to the rendezvous point where Anko was.

_"Good work, Death Adder."_ Anko replied a minute later. Naruto went ahead and shut off his communicator as he neared the rendezvous point, having been the last one to finish the mission. Lacking his cloak, Naruto's dark scales gleamed faintly in the dim moon light that bathed the clearing in its ethereal illumination. Dostya, though strong willed and not easily frightened, shivered slightly upon seeing Naruto's serpentine form. She had seen it the day Team 11 was made, but just couldn't get used to the sight for some reason. It wasn't like she hated him or feared him. She was just a little creeped out by his appearance.

_"Come on. We can make it back to Konoha before sunrise if we move out now."_ Naruto pointed out as Kira handed him his cloak, putting it on as they left the clearing.

HXHXHXHXH

The day after they returned to Konoha, Team Venom stood before the Sandaime yet again for their next mission. However, it wasn't the usual seek and destroy mission they always got. Taking the scroll from the old man's hands, Naruto began reading through it a few feet from his team; it was meant for his eyes only.

"Team 11, you're being sent to Wave Country as back-up for Team 7. Their sensei has been incapacitated by a Kiri missing-nin employed by Gatou of Gatou Industries." Sarutobi explained seriously as he puffed on his pipe. "Be very careful, however. Up until now, you've encountered simple civilians. In this mission, you'll be combating jounin level shinobi."

"Of course, Jiji!" Anko beamed, confident her students would pull through like they had every other time...

One week later, she was proven wrong...

Kakashi and herself were bleeding, having been incapable to land a blow of any kind to their opponent. Ami stood shaking beside Tazuna a short distance away from the fighting. Sai and Sasuke lay unconscious, turned into living pincushions by their own opponent. Kira and Dostya were being forced to tag team their two enemies, who were teaming up on them. This was the sight Naruto came across, knowing exactly what was going on in the thick mist due to his snake-like sense of smell highlighting everyone in shades of reds, oranges, and whites from their body heat.

_"ENOUGH!"_ Naruto bellowed as he moved towards the jounin fighting his sensei and Kakashi. Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to face Naruto as the mist began to thin. He was decked out in leather armor coated in strong metal scales the same size as his own that covered his torso and neck up to the base of his jaw, a black metal face mask covering the lower half of his face with an image of the inside of a snake's mouth painted on it almost as if it were grinning viciously. Brandishing his Death Seeker gauntlets, Naruto fired a volley of senbon tipped with non-lethal paralytic toxins at the masked kunoichi and the Demon Brothers fighting his team mates and fellow genin and at the man fighting the two jounin. Within moments, the mist was cleared. Anko and Kakashi moved to finish off Zabuza in his moment of vulnerability, but another volley of black senbon halted their movements.

_"All of you, stay out of this. This is between me and him."_ Naruto hissed angrily as he grabbed Zabuza by the throat and started dragging him down to the other end of the bridge. Once he knew they were out of ear shot, Naruto dropped the man on the ground gracelessly and removed the senbon from his bicep. Naruto quickly performed the Kirigakure jutsu to form a wall of mist between them and the others, hiding them from view.

_"Why? Why didn't you even look for me?"_ He demanded with narrowed eyes, hissing deep in his throat like any other snake one might find. Zabuza frowned in confusion, his mind a tad fuzzy from the toxins, before suddenly recognizing Naruto's serpentine features.

"A...A Reptilos..." The man whispered as he forced himself onto his feet, knees a little weak with blood loss. "B-But...Guren was the last of her clan...unless..." Zabuza's eyes widened in realization and shock as everything he once thought of his old life was false.

_"Yes, you understand what I'm talking about now, don't you?"_ Naruto hissed angrily again, fists clenched tight. _"I'm Reptilos Naruto, son of Reptilos Guren and Momochi Zabuza. In other words..."_

"You're my son..." Zabuza finished quietly, too stunned to actually react normally. Hesitantly reaching out with a shaking hand, Zabuza moved to touch Naruto's shoulder, who didn't move from his spot. Once he managed to put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, Zabuza pulled the young man into a bear hug, his face just as blank as Naruto's was, but for different reasons. When Zabuza released him, Naruto backed up a bit and adjusted his armored vest.

_"No matter what you may think, this doesn't mean you're off the hook."_ Naruto explained as he led Zabuza back to the Konoha shinobi, the mist dispersing as they did. _"You aren't forgiven for leaving me behind. Even if you were told I was dead, you shouldn't have stopped searching. You'll have to prove yourself and earn the right to be called my father."_

"Alright. We'll play by your rules." Zabzua admitted with a sigh of defeat. On the inside, however, Zabuza was jumping for joy, proud that he had a son strong enough to kick his ass despite being almost half his age. He was still in his prime and hadn't yet reached the penacle of his own strength just yet, but it was still good to know that his son was strong and healthy. _'Of course he is. Like Guren, he most likely learned Soul Theft upon awakening and has probably claimed a number of souls.'_

"Well, well, well...What do we have here? It seems the Demon of the Mist was nothing more than a wet kitten. Hehehe..." Gatou remarked snidely from the end of the incomplete bridge, his personal militia of mercenaries standing behind him. "Oh? And it seems we have quite a few good looking women among the group as well. The first man to bring me the slut with black hair and eyes will be rewarded immensely."

Before the thugs could even take one eager step forward, they were forced to their knees by a menacing aura of pure blood lust. Naruto, who had his back to them the whole time, slowly looked over his shoulder as dark red chakra began to coat his body in a thin layer, his scales slowly moving to cover every square inch of his skin. His head morphed into that of a snake as his neck grew longer and his hair changed into a multitude of small snake-like appendages sprouting from his scalp like dread locks. Eyes the color of freshly spilt blood, Naruto's claws grew larger and sharper as he bared his needle-like teeth and fangs in a furious snarl, a deep hissing rolling out of his throat.

_**"What...did you say?"**_ Naruto snarled, his hiss-like voice now deeper in tone and dripping with as much venom as his fangs, sickly yellow green droplets falling from his fangs as he faced the horde of men. _**"You dare call Kira a slut, you disgusting swine? You'll pay for your insolence! All Consuming Soul Theft!"**_

His eyes and the eyes on each of the hair-like snakes on his head flashed bright red before Gatou and his men froze in place, their bodies having been turned to stone. Reaching out with both hands, palms open, Naruto began to summon the souls of each thug and mercenary one by one, assimilating them into his own body. When it came to Gatou's, however, Naruto grabbed the writhing spectre by the throat and held him in front of him.

_**"You...You aren't fit to become a part of me."**_ Naruto growled as his eyes flashed bright blue before Gatou's spirit became to burn with ghostly flames, the man's face twisted into a silent scream. _**"Soul Scorch."**_

Once Gatou's spirit was completely burned away, Naruto returned to normal, but he wasn't finished. Raising his hands once again, Naruto clenched his fists and fired volley after volley of senbon into the stone corpses littering the bridge, shattering them on impact. His thirst for blood finally gone, Naruto's arms fell to his sides and his shoulders slumped. No one was able to catch him in time before he collapsed to the ground in a boneless heap, his left hand tightly clutching an obsidian crystal shard...

HXHXHXHXH

A week after the events on the bridge, Naruto had yet to wake up from the comatose state he had entered after he had destroyed Gatou's soul and calmed down. During that time, Kira and Dostya had been standing guard at Naruto's bedside while Anko and Kakashi recovered from their battle with Zabuza. Although he had been happy to find his once-thought-dead son after almost seventeen years, Zabuza had quickly fled the area with Haku and the Demon Brothers to recover their lost strength and to raid Gatou's vault before vanishing all together.

Slowly cracking the window open, Zabuza silently snuck into the bedroom. The two dark haired girls on his son's team weren't in sight and he was finding it difficult to figure if that was a good or a bad thing. Dismissing it for now, Zabuza reached into his pocket and pulled out a scroll and slipped it into one of the pockets in Naruto's cloak before turning around to leave, but found he had been caught when he saw the window was closed and felt the cold bite of sharp steel on his neck.

"Why are you here, Zabuza?" Dostya whispered harshly into the man's ear as she hung from the ceiling via chakra through the soles of her feet, her sword pressed against his throat so she could easily slice it open in case he tried to do anything she didn't like. Kira stepped out of the shadows of the corner nearest to the window, a pair of black trench knives grasped in her hands as she narrowed her eyes at Zabuza, her Sharingan blazing with two tomoe circling each pupil.

"I...just wanted to see my son one last time before I left." Zabuza sighed as he slowly raised his hands in surrender. Sure, he could fight the two and knock them out in the end, but it would create too much of a disturbance and alert the others, which would only become one giant pain in the ass for him.

"Why would you leave him alone again? Especially after all the shit he's been through without someone there to protect him?" Kira demanded quietly as she grabbed the collar of Zabuza's shirt angrily while Dostya removed her blade from his neck and silently dropped from the ceiling, landing gracefully on her feet.

"It's obvious that he doesn't need me anymore and that he wants nothing to do with me." Zabuza replied as he pried the girl's fingers off his shirt. That was when Kira slapped the man across the face, glaring daggers at him.

"Idiot! Of course he does! If he didn't, he would have killed you and the others in a heart beat!" She hissed angrily through clenched teeth, straining to keep her voice down. "The night before he transformed, Naruto had been praying to Kami just to know who his parents were and what they looked like. Since then, he's been obsessed with keeping track of any information on you. He's barely slept in the past three years because he's been so busy trying to figure out a way to find you. All he wants is to be accepted by you; that's it!"

"..." Zabuza turned his gaze away from Kira, unable to look her in the eye anymore. "I still can't stay with him. I have a friend in Konoha that I've been in constant contact with. The Councils were power hungry assholes back when Guren and I first met and they still are. If I go back, they'll have me arrested, executed, and collect payment on my head before turning Naruto into a mindless weapon, if they aren't already trying to do so. Believe me, I don't want to leave him again, but it's the only choice I have."

Without another word, Zabuza pushed Kira aside and left through the window...

HXHXHXHXH

Another week passed before Naruto finally awoke. Kira nor Dostya spoke of their encounter with Zabuza to anyone, not even Naruto, and played the fool about the whereabouts of the scroll in Naruto's cloak when the teen finally found it; he had yet to open it. The day after he woke up, Team 7 and Venom returned to Konoha and continued with their daily lives, but Naruto was noticeably more hostile towards the people of Konoha that had not gained his trust or respect, who were few and far between.

A month after their return passed by like it was nothing and Team Venom was nominated for the coming Chuunin Exams that were to take place in Konoha three months away from that day. The Exams started tomorrow. As such, Naruto could be seen drilling himself into the ground as he fought one of his summons, a great thirty foot long Naga with spined fins covering its back and arms. It was covered in black and dark blue scales in a camouflage-esque scheme while its fins were a sickly shade of yellow.

Eyes the color of the sky, the brutish serpent grinned faintly as he and Naruto split apart from their deadlock, bowing slightly to show the match was over. Just as they stopped, clapping could be heard as a titanic being slithered into the huge chamber. It was a giant King Cobra type of Naga, the Boss Summon of the Naga clan, who resided in the deep catacombs of Naruto's home. Spanning over six hundred feet in length and fifty feet thick, the Naga King was truly a frightening creature of immense power. His underbelly was a khaki-beige color with a thin stripe of rust colored scales separating his underbelly from the blue scales covering the rest of his body. His yellow eyes shone with pride as a grin formed on his rusty red serpentine face, the spined blue hood on scales and flesh open wide and showing how thrilled he was.

_**"Terrific! I'm impressed, Naruto. We've never had a summoner that has taken to our Venom Tail taijutsu style as well as you have. In a few years, you might even master it."**_ The Naga King's booming voice echoed as he laughed heartily, bringing a smirk to Naruto's face. He was grateful for the praise, but didn't let it go to his head. There was always going to be someone better than him at something, no matter how much he trained or studied. _**"For completing your training in the Hydralisk stance, I bestow upon you a new piece of the Reptilos clan armor."**_

Catching the item and looking at it, Naruto couldn't stop the shit-eating grin from forming on his lips behind his black metal mask. It was a pair of pauldrons to protect his shoulders and biceps made out of the bones of the previous Naga King and covered in the beast's diamond-hard scales. Even after ten thousand years of living, the immortal Naga King could only last so long before succumbing to the Will of Time and Death. Naruto quickly put the armor on and moved around a bit to test his mobility, which was surprisingly quicker and smoother than ever before.

_"Thank you, King Tas' Thule. I shall wear them with honor and pride."_ Naruto replied gratefully and politely, knowing it was best to remain as such in the presence of the Naga King. Apart from the Death Seeker gauntlets and his leather armored vest, the Gorgon Battle Armor, Naruto also wore a special metal helmet piece that attached to his mask and covered the rest of his head, leaving his hair to hang out of a small hole in the back in the image of a long pony tail while the snake grin on his mask was completed with the depiction of the snake's black head. Although in two separate pieces, the face mask and helmet piece created the Mask of Medusa, which strengthened his Soul Theft and Stone Gaze abilities. Hanging around his neck on a thin black chain was a pair of six inch long snake fangs flanking a small emerald marble that glowed bright in the darkness; the Heart of the Hydra, an amulet of great power that made him immune to all illusions and poisons so long as he was wearing it.

_**"They are made from the ribs of the late King Tas' Thale, my father. They are not only a piece of the Reptilos clan sacred armory, but also a family heirloom of the Tas' Thaal clan; my clan."**_ Tas' Thule explained as he leaned down so that his nose was less than a foot from Naruto's face, his sickly yellow eyes narrowed in caution. _**"Lose them and you'll be marked as a disgrace to the Reptilos clan and forbidden from summoning us ever again under pain of death. Got it?"**_

_"Yes, sir. Of course."_ Naruto replied smoothly, unfazed by the King's threat. Instantly, Tas' Thule was back to his previous cheerful self as they began to head down one of the giant corridors of Naruto's underground palace of sorts. He had discovered just why the halls were so massive a year after he was told of his heritage when he summoned Tas' Thule on his first try back then. _"I apologize, King Tas' Thule, but I must cut our time short. I have business to attend to elsewhere."_

_**"Oh? Such as?"**_ Tas' Thule questioned curiously, not at all offended by Naruto's requirement to leave early. Naruto grinned darkly behind his mask as he stopped and looked up at Tas' Thule's face.

_"Why, to collect the swords I commissioned from Higurashi Shi' Kal."_ Naruto replied humorously, laughing softly when Tas' Thule gave him a shocked expression. _"I see you remember him, the Reptilos clan's greatest black smith and unawakened warrior."_

_**"Of course I do, boy! He was my last summoner and the only Reptilos to summon me without being an Awakened. Me and him had such great times together on the field of battle and in the training fields."**_ Tas' Thule explained as he gained a far off look in his eyes. Smiling warmly, Naruto placed one of his gauntleted hands on Tas' Thule's scaled hide before putting his black cloak on and pulling the hood over his head to hide his entire body; he always made sure to keep his tail hidden under the cloak when out in public.

_"I'll be sure to bring him by some time soon. I'm sure you two will want to reacquaint yourselves after so long. Until then, I'll see you in a few days for our next training session."_ Naruto departed as he left via neon green lightning, reappearing just outside of the Hydra's Fangs weapon and armor shop owned by the Higurashi family. Entering the place of business, Naruto went straight to the counter in the back and reached to ring the bell on the counter when he was forced to black a scimitar from beheading him with his left gauntlet and then catching the broadsword coming from the right with his other hand. Lashing out with his tail, Naruto wrapped it around the neck of his attacker and smiled.

"Good to see you are keeping up with your training, Naruto-sama." Shi' Kal praised as he put both of his swords down and walked around behind the counter. He was a thin and lanky old man with a long wiry grey beard twisted into a thick braid that reached down to his ankles while his head was bald. Wrinkles covered almost every square inch of the man's body, who wore only a pair of baggy black pants and a baggy light grey tank top, his skin smeared with soot and coal from constant work in the furnace and smithing room.

_"It's good to see you too, Shi'kal. Are my swords ready for tomorrow?"_ Naruto asked expectantly. His question was answered with a pair of curved sickle swords being placed on the counter before him, a sheet of black silk wrapped around the two blades. Shi' kal had a thing for taking extremely good care of all of his weapons and his pride in his work showed as he gingerly pulled away the black silk. The pitch black glass that made up the blades gleamed brightly in the dying light of day shining through the nearby window, faint traces of neon green light flittering along the inside of the blades. The guards were simple dull golden metal bars that curved over the weilder's knuckles with a few small emeralds enbedded along the guard. The handles were wrapped in black silk with bright green diamonds running down their length, a dull golden cap finishing the swords off at the pommel.

"What do you wish to call them, Naruto-sama?" Shi' kal asked quietly, a true believer that all swords had souls or a sense of sentience and that all swords of any shape or condition should be treated with utmost care. Naruto frowned slightly in thought before smirking and grasping his new swords and giving them a few test swings.

_"Myrmidon and Praetorian."_ Naruto murmured quietly as Shi' kal handed him a pair of custom made scabards for his swords. Both scarbards were made of black metal with dull golden caps on the ends and small emeralds embedded along their sides like the guards on the swords themselves. Sheathing both swords and strapping them to his lower back with Myrmidon on his left and Praetorian on his right, Naruto pulled out a brown cloth bag secured with a brown leather string before dropping it in front of Shi' kal, whose eyes widened when he heard the metallic ring of gold coins rustling about.

"Oh, Naruto-sama, I...I can't accept this!" Shi' kal exclaimed in shock as he pushed the bag back towards Naruto, who simply pushed it back.

_"Take it, my friend. You've served my clan for nearly three hundred years; this is, but the least I can do to thank you for your kindness and patience."_ Naruto insisted as he silently thanked the man before quickly leaving the store, a very old man standing in shock with a bag in his hands containing enough pure gold coins to buy out a quarter of Konoha's real estate and have plenty left over for other things. Naruto couldn't stop from shedding a small tear as he smiled softly, touched by the man's pure heart and soul. Although enslaved by the Reptilos clan thousands of years ago, the Higurashi clan- previously known as the Shi' Kylo clan- were eternally loyal to the Reptilos clan even in times of chaos. The Shi' Kylo were simple humans granted eternal life by an ancient goddess their ancestors worshipped, whose name was long forgotten.

Shi' Kal was the last Shi' Kylo in the world just like Naruto was the last Reptilos, but he planned on correcting that soon. Once he became a chuunin, Naruto would become a legal adult in the eyes of shinobi law and be made the legitimate Reptilos clan head as well as placing him under the Clan Restoration Act, granting him the right to take on multiple wives, concubines, and/or servants in order to restore his clan. He had already decided to make Kira his first wife and queen of the Reptilos clan.

Heading to the Forest of Death to practice the kenjutsu style of the Naga summons, the Dance of a Slow Death, Naruto kept his hands resting on the handles of Myrmidon and Praetorian as he went from Konoha's western side to the eastern side where the training ground was located...


End file.
